The Supersoldier & The Lab Rat
by OohLaLaGirl
Summary: (See notes chapter) This should be subtitled Awkwardly In Love, because from their first few meetings, that is what Desiree Altier and Steven Rogers are. They're as different as night and day, and they're the last two people who actually expected to find love. But what does their future hold? And just how will they finally make their respective moves?
1. Chapter 1

AUTHORS NOTES

I **do not own **Marvel comics, nor do I own any of the characters and things mentioned within said comics. I'm not doing this to make a profit, nor am I doing this the way it actually happened in the series / movies.

This is simply a made up romantic fiction I started writing a really, really long time ago. I've read some amazing original character fanfics, pairing them with any and almost all of the Avengers. This is just my own shot at it and hopefully I do the characters justice.

I'd like to start off by saying that if you haven't seen Winter Soldier, go fucking see! It's amazing and worth it, to me at least.. But then again, it's got two of my very favorite men in it, so yes I'm gonna think it's amazing, duh. But seriously, go see it.

Bear with me, I'm by no means a perfect person, so yeah, I'll probably fuck this up totally. I'm going to try my best not to, however.

++ Warnings & Such ++

**rating:**

Just the usual, swearing, jabs at Iron Man via Captain America, because I love those two grumpy ass men. Eventual sex and occasional innuendo, so it's gonna be rated T/M

**genres:**

romance, humor, suspense, drama, angst, action.. I think that about covers it, really.

**characters used:**

the whole Avengers team with a center emphasis on Captain America, since this is a Captain America / OC love story.

**Pairing:**

Captain America x OC centered

**ooc warnings:**

know what? I'm not actually sure what to put here, but **do not expect perfection, people, I am an idiot**, lol. I am going to do my very very very best to not be OOC with anyone, but shit happens sometimes, okay?

**Other:**

**Okay, so I warn you, my OC is connected to Shield / Dr. Banner**. I've always loved the Hulk, and I've always wanted to create an original person who's connected to Dr. Banner somehow. She is one of his former students, and she's now his assistant.

**I warn you this ahead of time because a lot of people get real real bitchy if you don't just out and out tell them ahead of time what you're doing, explain things completely.

Some still get bitchy anyway. Bearing that in mind, **no flames, please**? This is something I was really nervous about posting, considering I only **just** got into the actual comic series thanks to the movies – _yes I'm backwards like that, and yes, I am one of 'those' fans. Go ahead and judge me, don't really care_-**

I have, however, done my best to make sure that my oc actually fits into Dr. Banner's individual story, that I'm not just sticking her in out of nowhere. And yes, she has her own problems, imperfections, etc..

(One being she's on Shield's radar for an ability that she rarely ever uses, and her work as a freelance researcher for several different companies that are all on Shield's radar.)

++ ABOUT MY ORIGINAL CHARACTER ++

**FULL NAME**

_Desiree Nicole Altier_

**NICKNAMES**

_Desi, D, Deedee_

**AGE**

_24_

**LOOSE BIOGRAPHY**

_Desiree was born to Analise and Raymon Altier, in July. Her father was a scientist who freelanced for Shield and did research on astrophysics, helped develop a few weapons that were used, though not often, in combat. He also taught at a college, and worked on studies based around telekinesis, trying to invent a serum that would help 'recreate' the Super Soldier serum, making it better. It never went through, and his tenure and funding were cut, he was fired when the college staff had to make budget cutbacks._

_It was during this time that Desiree's father began to drink heavily, and he began to become a darker type of person. He started to work for Hydra, a secret sector of Shield, and his work with Hydra to this day remains top secret, the files have all been destroyed. His work with Hydra (and consequently with Shield) were what cost him his wife when she was killed in a car bombing, an assassination attempt that nobody in his family was supposed to escape from._

_During Desiree's early years, she was a bright yet slightly antisocial sort of child who loved to learn and loved to read, loved going to school and sitting in on her father's lectures in class, when he'd take her along with him. She was often underfoot in a lab and remarked on more than one occasion that she felt 'at home' in a lab, that she liked and preferred science and machinery to people._

_After her mother's death, Desiree was stuck living with a father who was a darker version of the man she once knew and loved. The visits to his lab stopped, but her interest in science and learning didn't die, however, and the young teenage Desiree began to spend time lurking around the library in her town, and in the library of the local college campus. _

_It was Professor David Banner, who later became her mentor and college teacher, who took her under his wing. There is speculation that Desiree's father tried to 'experiment' on her throughout her childhood both knowingly and unknowingly on her part, forcing her to undergo long tests and other things to try and prove the theory that you could actually train yourself to develop never talks much about her teen years, the time frame in which Dr. Altier began to 'lose it' according to most._

_Currently, she is Dr. Banner's assistant on some smaller things that he does when not working with the Avengers, and she still attends the university her father taught at where she is double majoring in both History and Science, with a specialty in paranormal science._

_And she's been on Shield's radar all along, because she has telekinesis, though she rarely uses it. _

**OCCUPATION**

_Personal assistant to Dr. David Banner, Student, double majoring in both History and Science. _

**MARITAL STATUS**

_Obviously, if you read her bio at all, you realize that she's not a people person, and she's highly intelligent and sort of socially awkward.. Think of a female Dr. Spencer Reid if you will._

**LOOKS**

_When I'm writing her, I picture her as looking like Ashley Benson, only with messier curly hair that's a lot longer but usually worn up in a top knot or bun, and black square framed glasses that she needs to see. She stands about 5'3 and a half feet tall and she probably weighs around 135 to 140 lbs, she's definitely got curves. Her preferred style of dress is jeans, t shirs and tank tops, she either wears Doc Martens or Converses, and she doesn't really do anything with makeup._

**PERSONALITY**

_intelligent (but not a genius)_

_dry humored_

_quiet_

_more of an observer than a talker at parties_

_thoughtful and considerate_

_sort of standoffish_

_nervous upon occasion_

_thinks quickly when she has to_

_doesn't make friends or trust easily_

_a bit on the grumpy side_

_loyal_

_a bit sensitive_

_can be soft hearted_

_good listener_

_stubborn_

_easily angered_

_easily annoyed_

_tends to think the worst about herself and what people think about her_

_will not back down from a challenge or a fight_

_feisty_

_blunt with honesty_

_can be dirty minded_

_secretly passionate and uninhibited, but that doesn't come out often_

**HOBBIES**

_going for jogs_

_doing crossword puzzles, playing Mah Jong _

_solving riddles_

_listening to music, playing guitar_

_cooking, she's quite the little foodie_

_watching old movies_

_reading science journals, spending time in the lab, reading and learning in general_

_going for walks_

_surfing_

_driving fast_

_writing, mostly poetry and songs_

_visiting foreign countries_

**FAVORITE THINGS**

_-favorite music-_

_Metallica_

_Megadeth_

_Poison_

_Avenged Sevenfold_

_Aerosmith_

_Pink Floyd_

_Jimi Hendrix_

_-favorite foods-_

_chicken cattitore_

_shrimp poboys_

_burgers, french fries soaked in mustard_

_chili_

_nachos bell grande_

_jambalya_

_egg rolls_

_-favorite drinks-_

_red bull/vodka shots_

_smirnoff jello shots_

_flaming dr, pepper_

_dr pepper_

_water_

_white tea_

_flavor infused water_

_jack daniels_

_sweet tea_

_cherry coca cola_

_-favorite colors-_

_olive green_

_gray_

_baby blue_

_pale pink_

_soft violet_

_-favorite vices-_

_occasionally she smokes a Black & Mild cigarillo_

_biting her nails when nervous_

_swearing when angry or nervous_

_-favorite books-_

_Great Gatsby_

_any history book_

_The Shining_

_Under The Dome_

_Flesh Gothic_

_erotic romance novels_

_-favorite animals-_

_horse_

_koala bear_

_red panda_

_flying squirrels_

_-favorite insects-_

_none, actually_

**LEAST FAVORITE THINGS**

**-**_least favorite music-_

_any kind of pop auto tuned music_

_elevator music_

_-least favorite food-_

_lambchops_

_asparagus_

_spinach_

_mustard greens_

_-least favorite drink-_

_gin_

_scotch_

_pepsi_

_unsweetened tea_

_-least favorite colors-_

_bright pink_

_bright purple_

_white_

_yellow_

_-least favorite book-_

_probably the twilight series, she feels that it was the 'worst possible thing to happen for teen romances'._

_Romeo & Juliet – she feels that was the second worst one._

_-least favorite animals-_

_large dogs_

_camels_

_bats_

_-least favorite insects-_

_pretty much any of them, she hates insects_

_-least favorite vices-_

_smoking, but she's a nervous sort, she can't actually quit_

_biting her nails_

_her nervous stutter_

**SPECIAL ABILITY**

_has undeveloped telekinesis, doesn't use it often at all. _

**SHIELD OR HYDRA**

_works for Shield, just doesn't realize it until she's bought on as Dr. Banner's personal assistant at his request, to keep her from being pulled in by Hydra, who want her for her telekinesis, which he knows about and tries to get her to develop and work on._

**ROMANTIC PAIRING**

_Captain America_


	2. Chapter 2

_CHAPTER ONE:_

_Tense and Angry Situations_

Her bright hazel eyes scanned the aircraft carrier for any possible means of escape. Desiree Altier hadn't ever been the kind of girl who liked being bought into a confined space, questioned and then requestioned at least 15 times for about 5 consecutive hours straight. These people wanted something from her, and she'd yet to figure out what.

This made the 24 year old double major college coed very, very angry.

"I've got rights, damn it." she said aloud, nobody really listening to her. It didn't actually come as a surprise, these people, these agents didn't normally listen to reason or respond to it well either. She sighed as she stepped outside onto the deck of the aircraft carrier and leaned against a support column nearby, lighting up a cigarette.

She smoked a lot when she was nervous. And right now, she was more nervous than she'd ever been in her entire life, because in the wake of discovering Shield's supersecret layer, Hydra, every research project done over the past few decades were being called into question, whether it be in the media, or amongst the other agencies.

And she'd unfortunately worked on several of the smaller ones. So yes, her name had come up and no, she was not happy about it, not by any means.

She sighed as she sat down, smoking the cigarette that dangled carelessly between full unglossed and very chapped lips as she swore under her breath.

Dr. Banner had been called back too, and he was being questioned, about her, currently, as well as his own work on his own projects. Including the one that caused him to morph into a giant green man with an obvious anger issue.

"God damn it, seriously. Like anything I worked on is of any real import. Most of them were failures anyway." the blonde scowled as she stubbed out the cigarette and eyed the doors that were closed, the ones that Dr. Banner sat behind right this very second, being questioned as she had been.

A female agent walked past in a sleek black leather suit, talking quietly to the living legend, Captain America and Desiree called out after them as they passed, "How fucking long are you people gonna keep me?"

"As long as it takes to figure out who you really work for and if anything you might have worked on was something that compromised Shield." the female answered as she swore again, digging around in her pockets nervously.

She also fidgeted a lot when nervous or angry. She looked up and her eyes met the icy blue intent gaze of Captain America and she stared at him intently, although slightly disinterested for a few moments.

So what he was a hero and a damn good looking one to boot?

He was probably just like Stark, just like any other man with 'special abilities' or in a position of power. Power tended to turn even the most gentle of men into giant jackasses. Her own father had been consumed by his want of it, his need to harness science, to control things that were better left out of his control.

And sadly, to some degree, she'd suffered the fallout along the way.

"We're all having to go through it." Steve stated calmly as he eyed the girl who looked no older than his body did currently, he'd stopped aging, he was perpetually going to remain a 20something year old male.

The girl muttered something in French and went back to chipping away at badly bitten and black polished fingernails and Natasha turned to him and muttered with a playful grin, "Cheery one, huh?"

"She knows Dr. Banner. They showed up together." Steve mused as he watched the girl, curious about her, but not curious enough to walk over and brave her abrasive manner to get to know her. Besides, anytime he even thought about another girl lately, he'd remember Peggy and the guilt alone would nearly kill him.

Then there was the whole 'unspoken' thing that happened between himself and Natasha recently, while he was helping her with a case that turned their entire division inside out and ultimately wound up disbanding Shield due to it's compromise.

Now the government was up in arms and naturally, they wanted people to blame, they wanted answers. Hydra, of course, mysteriously faded into the background, dormant, Steve suspected they were waiting for orders, for the perfect chance to strike back.

"I noticed. And I overheard Fury asking him a lot of questions about her father, about something that happened to her.. Fury seems to think she'd be an asset or something. Can't imagine why." Natasha stated simply as she gave the girl sitting nearby the once over.

Desiree sat staring out at the horizon, tapping her almost unwearable Converses against the metal deck of the aircraft carrier as she thought about everything they'd bought up while they had her in that interrogation room of theirs.

How in the hell had they known all of that if they hadn't been watching her all along? Sure, she'd figured that at least that much of what her own father, Dr. Raymon Altier said about Shield was true, that the lot of them were sneaky bastards, and they were behind her mother's death, but she still wasn't sure why they were so damn interested in her telekinesis.

Other people had the shit and she didn't bother trying to harness or use hers. She'd really rather not have the damn ability in all honesty, and it was the main reason her father really pissed her off. He'd done this to her, him and his experiments.

The doors opened and Dr. Banner walked over, stood by her and said quietly, "Fury's gonna make you go back in.. You're not in any sort of trouble, they've figured out by now you did more work for Shield than any other organization, but he wants to talk to you about something."

"What?"

" I think I'll let him tell you." Dr. Banner said as he walked further down the deck, stopping to talk to the two people she'd spoken to curtly moments before.

She stood and walked into the office on shaky legs and took a seat across the desk. Fury told her plainly, simply, that she'd been on their radar since her childhood, and that he'd much prefer her working on the right side of the fight and not on Hydra's side, he insinuated that if she thought her father's experiments on her were something, then Hydra would make her rethink that and quickly if they got their hands on her somehow.

"How do I know you're not full of it, Fury?"

"Do you really want to take that risk? Everybody's secrets are out now. That means, Ms. Altier, that your secrets are out. Your father's secrets are out."

She studied him for a moment, brow raised, gaping at his nerve, a little angry at herself for not just getting out of here when she had a chance a few hours ago.

"Fine.. One condition.. I work as Banner's personal assistant. If you can't do that, I don't play ball."

"No conditions. You either play ball with us or we think you're already with the other team, Ms. Altier. It wasn't an offer, it was a demand."

"Who the fucking hell do you think you are, sir? I'm just a scientist. The telekinesis isn't even something I try to acknowledge having and I personally don't give a shit about either side of this. I've seen what Shield did for my father, and for Dr. Banner.. Explain to me why any rational person would work for you guys?" the feisty 24 year old raged as Fury eyed her and said calmly, "If you want to know what really happened to your mother, Ms. Altier, the files are in my archives. But you only get to read the reports if you come to work on this side."

"And if I don't?"

"Then I suppose we'll have to assume you were working with Hydra."

"That's blackmail."

"No, it's me making a perfectly rational assumption. Remember, nobody knows who they can trust in our government anymore." Fury said calmly as he eyed her a moment.

"If you like.. You can assist Dr. Banner. But Shield will know where you are at any and all times. And we will be dropping in. You will be expected to do things. Maybe even develop your telekinesis."

She glared and said through gritted teeth, "Fine you fuckin bastard. Fine." as she stood and asked in a hostile tone, "We're done?"

"We're done. You're free to go. Dr. Banner can show you the way out. He was as angry about all this as you were."

She didn't even finish letting Nicholas Fury speak, instead, she darted out the door as if the building were about to blow.

And promptly smashed straight into Steve Rogers, who spilled a soda all over his white t shirt and steadied her, asking her with raised brow, "Are you okay?"

"I fucking hate that one eyed jackass. How in the hell do you and Dr. Banner work for him?" she practically spat as Steve eyed her and chuckled then said "He's not that bad."

"He's an ass." Desiree spat as she looked up at the living legend and said "You're actually taller than I thought you'd be." before walking away, mentally kicking herself for the remark just now.

She caught up to Dr. Banner and tapped his shoulder, said quietly, "So guess who's sucked into Fury's little 'war games?'

Dr. Banner eyed her a moment and then managed a chuckle, a tight smile as he said solemnly, "Yeah.. I figured you'd take it that way. Look, at least this way, I know you're safe."

"Right, sir.. Because I was in so much danger before." Desiree muttered dryly who looked up at her mentor and then asked "How the hell do you work with him?"

"I just remember that it's better than being on their shit list. That I'm helping people occasionally." Dr. Banner replied thoughtfully as he said "So.. I'll get to see you in person to finish our chess game?"

Desiree gave him a tight smile and a thumbs up as she said quietly when stiffly hugging the man, "Thanks.. You've always kinda been more than a teacher and a mentor to me, sir."

He hugged her back equally as stiff and said quietly, "You're a good kid. It's Friday night.. Get out and do something."

She laughed and then said with a serious look, "Oh.. You were being serious.. You know me, Dr. Banner.. I'm allergic to fun."

He waved her off dismissively and walked to his own waiting car, getting inside. Having her around again, in the lab, it would really ease his mind.

She'd been one of few people he'd allowed even remotely close, and it'd been reluctantly on his part. She'd sort of just kept showing up, demanding his attention, curious, eager to learn and as a result, he'd given in and sort of cautiously taken her under his wing.

And when he'd discovered her name was on the list of people to be questioned post Shield compromise, he'd worried that maybe he'd been stupid, that maybe somehow he'd been to blame for her being on the list in the first place.

But his earlier conversation with Fury had cleared that one right up. Apparently, Shield (and Hydra) had been watching her and her father for a while.

And now, a lot more about his young 'protege' made much more sense than it had before.

Desiree got into her car and sat there fuming for a while as she wondered what Fury meant about them having a file just on her mother's death?

Why would they investigate the damn crime, if they had been the ones to orchestrate it? Had her father lied to her about everything?

She grumbled as she turned her attention to the pros of working on the Shield side of the fence.. She'd get to see her mentor more, she'd get to participate in things that actually saved and helped people better their lives, and she'd be out of reach from Hydra.

Not to mention, she'd get to know Captain America, who'd always fascinated her for some reason or another.


	3. Chapter 3

_CHAPTER TWO:_

_DYNAMITE COMES IN SMALL PACKAGES BUDDY_

"What in the hell does he mean, report to training?" Desiree asked as she glared for a moment up at a much taller Steve Rogers, and then at Nick Fury, her hand in her hair, her other hand on her curvy hips, angrier than she'd even been yesterday, if at all possible. So she'd had one episode and she'd blown all the lightbulbs down the hallway. It happened sometimes when she got angry after messing up a project.

And anybody who'd been soaked by cold blue liquid would have been a little pissed, wanted to smash the beaker the liquid bubbled out of. That didn't mean she wanted to nor needed to work on harnessing her telekinesis. She was only here to help Dr. Banner, the rest of the team if needed. She was in no way shape or form 'superhero' material, and she frankly wasn't the slightest bit interested in being a part of the 'initiative'.

But Fury, he commanded something, and as usual, he figured that would do, he'd get what he asked for. Not this time, because Desiree wasn't going to do this quietly, without some form of fight or something. Fury looked at her and laughed a little then stopped laughing and said calmly, "I was being serious, Ms. Altier. You're to report to the training room. Someone is going to work with you on your ... Ability. So incidents like earlier don't happen every single time you get a little bit too angry."

He turned on his boot heel and walked away, waving his hand dismissively behind him as she yelled after him "Come back here and make me, you one eyed jackass." as she glared intently at him. She swore as the headache washed over her in a wave, dropping her to her knees almost. She'd only ever tried moving really small targets with her mind. She'd never tried moving bigger things. A light bulb shattered, but Fury remained upright, much to her dissatisfaction.

She'd never wanted to try moving bigger things, even when her father had locked her into a room for 2 to 3 hours at a time and forced her to do it, but she'd give anything to dangle this jackass a good 7 feet off the floor by his combat boots currently. He wasn't a scientist, of course, he didn't understand that with her ability came side effects, hence the very reason that she nor Dr. Banner actually ever tried developing her ability beyond much more than occasionally slamming a door in anger, or levitating a spoon with her mind, maybe a table or a chair..

They didn't know what the side effects were for the most part, because naturally, her father had been on a downward spiral, and convinced that the goverment was 'onto him', onto his continued research, even after the college he worked for fired him, he'd burnt all his research files.. Including the ones he'd made as he'd done his experiments on her.

"Fine, asshole." she grumbled as the door he walked out of banged shut behind him. "There. I controlled it." she ground out through gritted teeth as she turned and stormed off, going back into her lab. Steve watched her walking away and Dr. Banner said to him quietly, "Her ability is a sore spot... Kinda like mine?"

"I got that, yeah." Steve muttered as Dr. Banner said solemnly, "She can control it. She's just too afraid to use it. And she hates having it, given that her father experimented on her." while looking at Steve who asked with a raised brow, "Why?"

"He was developing a mental disorder around the time the college he taught at fired him. Delusional, he figured that if he were going to finish his work, he'd just experiment on someone more available to him. She was the only one. She doesn't talk about it much, but I think her father really started to scare her then." Dr. Banner mused as Steve said calmly, "Fury does have a good point. Hydra can come after her, and they might when they find out what she can really do. If she can't use her power to protect herself, she's a sitting duck."

Dr. Banner shook his head and said "Not as long as she has a big green brother." calmly as he turned and walked down the hallway, heading into the room that his personal assistant disappeared into. He stood in the doorway and then said quietly, "Just try working with someone on it."

"You too?" she asked as she turned, looked at him with wide and slightly fearful eyes. He studied her a moment and then said calmly, "We know that if you use it in short bursts, Desiree, it's not too bad. Remember when we were trying to find a way to get rid of it, so you worked on developing it for a few weeks? It'll be like that. And I see Fury's point."

"Yeah? Well Fury didn't have a deranged bastard of a father jamming some bluish purple liquid into his neck every damn night and locking him into rooms and making him move chairs, tables, anything he could find for him to move with his own damn mind, now did he? Because I've been down that road once, Dr.. And I'm not goin back." she said quietly, firmly as she rubbed her arms, a shiver crept up them just thinking about the things her father made her do in the name of 'science' and 'power'.

"I know.. But I'll work with you on it." Dr. Banner said as she looked at him a moment and then said calmly, "Fine. But only to defend myself, and only a little bit. I'm not going to use this crap like a party trick whenever he feels like making me. I only came here to help you."

"I know. And I'm glad you're here. But you're safer here, with us, than you are out there where Hydra can find you. Because they're trying to rebuild.. And someone who can do what you can already? They'd be a weapon in their hands."

"And I don't want that." Desiree said quietly, almost in a thoughtful tone as she took a few deep breaths. "I'm gonna go for a walk." she said quietly as she walked out of the lab and down the hallway. She lingered in the doorway of the gym and workout area of the carrier, watching Steve punch a few old punching bags with anger and determination burning in his eyes.

Casually, she wandered in, flopped down on a workout mat and watched him quietly. Steve stopped his workout when he heard footsteps and turning, he found Dr. Banner's personal assistant watching him intently. "You're sneaky when you want to be." he mused as she shrugged and then said quietly, "About earlier... I'm not always a bitch it's just.."

"Yeah, Fury tends to feed on the worst in all of us. Trust me, you haven't seen him in a room with Stark yet." Steve admitted as he said "Did you calm down?" as she nodded and then biting her lower lip said "For the most part, yeah. I just.. I miss the way my life was before that jerk stormed into my campus and dragged my ass down here."

He studied her and she laughed as she shrugged and said sheepishly, "Who am I kidding? What life did I actually have? I mean I went to class, went to work in the labs, helped Dr. Banner via emails and stuff.." while looking at her fingernails, biting at her thumbnail.

Steve watched her and said quietly, "I miss my old life too." as she looked up at him and asked in curiousity, "So.. Did you have any real trouble adjusting? I mean this century, it's totally backwards, definitely different." with a bit of a smug smirk as she thought about him trying to actually understand a computer and the internet, or some of the appliances.

He shrugged and said "It is. But it's okay, I mean I'm stuck here, might as well make the most of it."

"True." Desiree mused as she stood, popping her toes against the mat before throwing out casually, "I can teach you things.. I mean if you're not annoying about it. And I'm not busy." before disappearing out the door and down the hallway quickly, mentally kicking herself the entire way. Why in the hell had she extended that invitation even?

She was just a personal assistant, she was probably more of a nuisance to everyone on the team (except Dr. Banner, and she sometimes figured that she definitely annoyed him) than anything. But he had made a good point..

She was stuck in this situation now, might as well make the most of it, right?


	4. Chapter 4

_CHAPTER THREE:_

_This Crazy Modern World We Live In  
_

She'd been totally against Tony's idea from the start, she hated people, and she really hated drunk people for the most part. So far in her life, the only drunk she'd met that she could at least halfway tolerate was ironically, Tony Stark. But his idea wasn't a good one, and in no way, shape or form was it going to help Steve learn about the modern era he was now living in. And she'd said so about 10 times since they'd all gotten into this nightclub Tony insisted on dragging them all out to.

"Relax." Tony told her, only to have her glare at him and then give a disgusted scowl as a drunken frat boy stumbled past, yelled aloud "I'm Gettin Married." as he stared at her for exactly 6 seconds. She rolled her eyes and called out to the guy, "Tell your missus she's really getting a prize." as she gave the guy a sarcastic thumbs up and grumbled, looking up at Steve who stood on the left side of her, then at Dr. Banner who stood on the right of her. She gave Dr. Banner a quiet and knowing smile and stood on tiptoe whispering "Relax Doc.."

"You said it yourself, Desiree, how does one relax with a room full of complete and total morons." Dr. Banner pointed out, which made Desiree shrug and then whisper back "Dunno.. Just try."

"Same to you. I'm gonna go to the bar." Dr. Banner said as she gave him a nod, a mocking salute and said "And I will try not to get myself thrown out, Father." in a joking tone of voice which made him scowl a moment then turn to walk away. This left her standing alone with Steve, because Thor was already at the bar with Jane, and of course, Natasha and Hawkeye kind of disappeared the second they all got into the exclusive nightclub.

"So..."

"So..." Steve echoed as some nightmarish and headache inducing type of music played at a volume too high to possibly be safe for anyone's hearing. He studied the girl standing next to him and then said "So.. You don't like crowds, huh?"

"As a general rule, Captain, I kinda hate people. I've seen them at their worst, actually, kind of burnt me out on being a people person." Desiree mused as she sipped a bottled and infused water, eyeing everyone in the nightclub with a confused look. Steve noticed the look she gave and he asked "What's wrong?" and she shrugged then said quietly, "Just don't get it.."

"Get what?"

"Why these places even exist, actually. That" she nodded towards the dance floor where a couple were literally almost seconds away from almost having fully clothed standing up sex on the dance floor before continuing to say "is not dancing.. Dancing is not groping. Dancing is not almost having sex in the darkest part of some nightclub."

Steve studied her with a raised brow, confused. She shook her head and shuffling her feet against the floor she looked at her shoes as she muttered "Forget it, it's stupid." as he asked "Forget what?"

"People annoy and confuse me, that's all." Desiree stated, having actually forgotten what her point was, yet again distracted by his baby blue eyes. He chuckled and then nodded as he eyed her water bottle and asked "Is there fruit in there?"

"And vegetables." Desiree stated as she sipped from the bottle and said calmly, "I don't really drink often. When I do, I'm alone." which made him nod then blurt out on a whim, "What don't you do alone?"

She thought it over and shrugged as she said calmly, "Not much, actually. I'm just.. I'm not good with people? I'm what you'd call socially awkward." while she scanned the crowd, spotting everyone that'd come with them, biting her lower lip.

"I thought he was supposed to be teaching you about our so called 'dating customs' from the new era?" Desiree mused as she watched Tony tossing shot after shot back at the bar, talking to Dr. Banner, completely unfocused on the task he'd claimed was the reason for their outing tonight. Steve shrugged and said quietly, "Doesn't actually matter. I didn't actually wanna do this."

"Why not? I mean, if you want a girl, Steve.. Statistics are in your favor.. This hero thing? 100 percent genuine panty dropper. And it's gotta be lonely, I mean.. Err, shit, nevermind.. I'm gonna go play darts." Desiree said as she hurriedly took off in the direction of the dart boards in the back of the nightclub. She mentally kicked herself and then muttered quietly, "This.. It's why you don't ever do well with people, Des.. You cannot just blurt things out like that." before walking over to an ancient jukebox and finding some oldies, sliding a few crumpled dollar bills into the machine.

In the reflection of the glass on the jukebox, she saw Steve standing there, eyeing her with a confused and slightly concerned expression on his face as he asked "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just.. Open mouth, insert foot, huh?" Desiree laughed sheepishly as the song 'Louie, Louie' started to play, making several people look at her strangely, and shake their heads. Steve chuckled a little and then said "That's better. At least if we're gonna be stuck here until Stark's drank the whole damn bar under, we have decent music?"

She nodded and then asked him casually, "So.. You ever played Darts, supersoldier?"

"Actually, I have. Not much." Steve said as she held out 3 darts and said "I play a lot.. Poker, pool and darts.. If you know what you're doing, you can make a killing in college. Wanna play a game and let the others do whatever?"

"Sure." he said as he followed her to the dartboards and watched her aim, the dart bouncing off the board and falling on the floor. She swore a little and then turned to him and explained, "I was trying to cure myself, one time.. The telekinesis? I used to use it to win darts, when I realized that apparently I couldn't cure it. But then I stopped bothering after..." her voice trailed off and she went silent as she remembered the worst incident she'd ever actually had with her telekinesis.

One of many reasons she viewed it as more of a curse than a gift or an ability. She didn't talk about herself much, and nobody really knew about the incidents, or her father, - at least to her knowledge-, so she didn't think it'd be a good idea to blurt out "Oh, by the way, I blacked out one night, in a really, really bad rage and nearly killed somebody who was trying to hurt me first by dropping a chandelier on their head, using my power."..

That, like other things, stayed buried deep down. That had also been the night she figured out that anger and extreme excitement were 'triggers' for her ability.

"After what?" Steve asked in curiousity, Desiree shrugged and shook her head as she sipped her water and stated simply, "I never talk about it. I'm not a good person, okay? There are reasons I try and keep to myself." before launching a dart at the dart board.

Across the bar, Dr. Banner noticed Steve and Desiree playing darts and Tony mused aloud, "See? I told you if he came out tonight, he'd meet someone." as Dr. Banner said solemnly, "He already knew her." which made Tony respond, "So tonight wasn't a waste. He won't stand around complaining, and you don't have to worry about our little lab tech meeting some jerk."

"Trust me when I say this, Stark.. Our little lab tech can handle herself among jerks." Dr. Banner said as he sipped his whiskey, watching the girl he considered 'family' with Steve Rogers across the bar, wondering just how he did feel about it.. He wasn't against it, totally, but he wasn't sure if he liked it, either. Then he reminded himself that of the other men on the team they'd formed, Steve was the safer bet.

Desiree turned to Steve with a hand on her hip as she laughed and said "Thought you said you've played before?" while holding a dart she'd bent down to pick up from the floor, out to him. He chuckled as he said calmly, " Didn't say when, doll. It has been a while. Kinda took an ice nap, remember?"

"Still though, you didn't even enter the same realm as the board, Steve." Desiree said as she sipped her water. Steve eyed her and blurted out before he could stop himself, "Can I try some of that?"

"I, uhh.. Yeah.." Desiree said as she unscrewed the lid and held it out to him, adding sheepishly, "So you can drink too.. I'm sort of a germaphobe?" biting her lower lip. He took the water after giving her a raised brow and a laugh. He took a few sips and said "Not bad."

She took back her water bottle and then smiled as she nodded and said "It's got strawberries and lemons in it." while screwing her lid back on. Another old song she'd chosen came on and he asked with a boyish grin, "Do you dance?"

She doubled over in laughter and then looked at him and said "Oh.. You were being serious.. Yeah, not really.. Me dancing is a hazard for people's feet. And other parts.." which made him laugh and shrug as he said "Come on, it won't be so bad."

"I don't dance like that though." she said, gesturing to the dance floor. Steve laughed and said "Neither do I. Just come on." while leading her to the floor. She mulled it over a moment and then said "We'll think of it as a social experiment." mostly to herself, following him out to the floor. Steve laughed a little as he momentarily thought of Peggy and the dance he'd promised her but never gotten to dance with her.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I just.. I thought of something I never got to do." Steve muttered as she looked at him a moment and then said quietly, "Understandable. Look, if it's got to do with us dancing, maybe we shouldn't?" while backing away, eager to get off the dance floor, feeling a little claustrophobic because of the crowd. He nodded and said simply, " It is kind of crowded in here. And this music is annoying.. Wanna go for a walk?"

"In New York.. At night. You've got to be kidding me." Desiree said as Steve studied her a moment then said "Not far from here."

"Okay, as long as we don't get too far, right?" Desiree said as the two of them walked out the door and fell into conversation. Before they realized just how long they'd been walking, Natasha's Corvette was slowing beside them and the window rolled down. "Aww.. You two want a ride back?"

"Sure.. I mean, do you want to ride back with Natasha and Hawkeye?"

Desiree studied them a moment and muttered something then said quietly, "I think I'll hail a cab or something." a moments jealousy at the gorgeous redhead driving, the way Steve kinda looked at her when he thought nobody was looking.

Steve looked at her and said " Get in. I'm not leaving you out here." as he tried to figure out what the difference was between him and Dr. Banner and the rest of the team, in Desiree's eyes. He noticed she had a sort of apprehensive and slightly jealous look when she looked at Natasha, but doing the smart thing, she kept that to herself.

She glared a moment and slid into the backseat, smushed dangerously close to Steve, who felt a few electric jolts run through his body when their bodies brushed in the close proximity of the backseat's cramped quarters. She looked at him a few moments and then turned her attention back to her cell phone, scrolling through the internet.

They pulled into the underground parking area of the 'compound' they were using as headquarters, and she practically bolted from the car, politely thanking Natasha for the ride, saying to Steve, "Not a bad night, huh?" before disappearing inside the compound.

Steve looked at the door sliding shut behind her, confused.

"She's an interesting person.. Kind of like a grumpy little old lady." Natasha remarked as Steve smiled a little and said with a shrug, "Yeah." as they walked into the compound, finding their floor in the building.


	5. Chapter 5

_CHAPTER FOUR:_

_Uncomfortable Conversations aka Girl Talk  
_

"What the hell is this crap?" Desiree roared as she walked into the fitness area of their compound and heard Amy Winehouse blasting at full blast. Natasha Romanov stopped and looked up, smirked as she said "It's called music. It's a song called Fuck Me Pumps by Amy Winehouse. What's wrong with it?" while looking at Desiree who looked at her with a shrug and said "For starters? The name." while slipping off her shoes, grabbing hold of the chin up bar near her and pulling herself up on it. As Natasha worked out, Desiree tried her best not to stare at the other woman in curiousity and a little more jealousy than she'd normally have. She bit her lower lip as she forced herself to focus and count out her chin ups audibly enough so that Natasha heard her and she appeared at least half assed serious about this 'firming up' thing.

Since apparently Fury thought it'd be cute to issue her an outfit similar to Natasha's, promote her to field agent for the moment. Both things Desiree had bitched, pissed and moaned about quite vocally for over a week now, and she was still fuming everytime she saw the man anywhere near her general vicinity. The music went off and Natasha stood there, leaned against a wall, arms crossed, watching Desiree with an amused expression. "You don't like me, do you?"

"Actually, Romanov, it's not you. I generally hate most people." Desiree said in a defensive tone as she jumped down from the chin up bar, exhausted, flopped to the floor and took a few long deep breaths.

"But you're always talking to Dr. Banner or Steve." Natasha questioned in curiousity as she sat down next to the girl who immediately moved a foot to the left, in a hurry to get away from her or something. She did this with everyone, Natasha noticed and when she'd asked Dr. Banner about it, he'd explained what 90 percent of her childhood and teen life had been like.

She felt bad for the girl, she wanted to try and befriend her, especially since she thought the girl might actually have a crush on Steve. Any idiot could see it, well, any idiot but Steve, of course. But he was so wrapped up in his grief over Peggy and in his search for Bucky, or the Winter Soldier, that he barely noticed anything or anyone else lately.

"So? I feel comfortable around them.. I don't feel weird." Desiree answered calmly as she sat up and looked at Natasha, brow raised. "What's it matter?" Desiree asked as Natasha said with a shrug, "Because, Desi, I think it's more than comfort.. At least with Steve."

"Umm, no. He's a friend. Like you keep claiming Clint is?" Desiree taunted, Natasha laughing as she said "He is a friend though. We just don't announce our thing." and looked at Desiree, who had a blank look. She realized then that the girl was every bit as inexperienced as she'd initially thought and smirking she clarified, "Friends can mean many things."

"Yeah, uhh.. Okay, I see." Desiree muttered, biting her lip, confused and a little irritated at the innuendo that Romanov thought she didn't understand. She wasn't a fucking kid, for God's sakes, she just.. She could count her 'experiences' on one hand. Or no hands, it was that limited. She looked at Natasha and then said "Even if I did feel more, not saying I do because I do not, Romanov, do not twist my words or run and make up a ton of crap.. It'd be kinda hard to even get near him, everytime the guys go out and make an appearance, the groupies flock to them like bees to honey."

"And? You're pretty too."

"And? I'm also not into flaunting myself like some tarted up whore." Desiree said as Tony burst into laughter from the doorway and stepped in, shaking his head, smirking as he said "Kid.. Banner tells me you're a car girl."

"maybe?"

"I have a new toy.. And nobody to show it off to." Tony bragged as Natasha shot him a look and mouthed "The hell, Tony? Pepper?" to which he mouthed back "Relax.. Just like her as a kid sister or something.. No horndogging here. Banner told us to try and get her used to all of us." which prompted Natasha to say aloud, "Actually, Tony, I was gonna steal her.. Maybe we could go to the pool or something?"

"Highly unlikely. Fury's not letting anybody in or out." Tony grumbled as Desiree looked back and forth helplessly. She sighed and said quietly, "I'm going to my lab." as she stood and started to walk out. Natasha looked at Tony and said "Seriously?"

"Hey.. Someone's gotta push Steve into making some form of move.. You saw the way that junior agent was admiring her, and you saw what Steve almost did to the guy when he pulled that jerk move and tried to play grab ass."

"Yes, Tony, but I also saw what SHE did to the guy. She needs more girl time." Natasha said as she stood and walked out of the fitness area, down the hallway to the girls lab. She didn't knock, she just pushed open the door and said with a smirk, "C'mon.. We're sneakin outta here. A few hours to destress.. If you hate it, I swear to God I'll bring you straight back to the lab."

"Where the hell would we go even? This is New York.. There's a stressor everytime you turn a corner." Desiree said as she studied the female agent, not sure why Natasha was suddenly trying to become besties with her or something, wondering what her alterior motive was. Everyone who got close to her usually had one. Everyone but Dr. Banner, of course. She trusted him.

And she was starting to trust Steve. Though lately, he was scarce, he was always gone on some kind of assignment. Without giving her an answer, Natasha dragged her out of the lab, with Desiree protesting all the way down the hall, the entire elevator ride down to the parking area, and then even more when Natasha practically shoved her into the passenger seat of her black Corvette.

"Would you relax? I mean seriously, life can be fun too. We don't have anything to do, and Fury's got us all laying low.. I thought we could go to a pool or something, swim a few laps."

"But we could've done that back at the compound."

"But it wouldn't have been fun, and you would have found a way to bitch out on me." Natasha corrected her as Desiree pouted then scowled, then resigned herself to the fact that like it or not, this thing, this Natasha wanting her to be besties or something, was going to happen. She suspected that Natasha was contemplating trying something with Steve and herself, and she groaned when she realized that she was probably right.

"Okay, alright, damn."

"That's a girl." Natasha joked as she said "So.. I noticed you seem to go to the exhibit a lot.. And your file says you wrote a paper on Captain's experimentation process for a history course in college?"

Desiree bit her lip and fumed, blushing all over. "So sue me. What he did for America, what he, I mean you guys are all doing for America now happens to fascinate me. Doesn't mean I'm in love with the guy. Can't a girl and a guy be friends?"

"They can.. But you get this really, really cute look on your face when you see him.. You should see it." Natasha teased as Desiree scowled at her and murmured "I do not."

"You do sooooo."

"Do not, damn it."

The girls made their way into the pool and just as they went to open the door, the door opened from the other side. And Steve walked out with a friend of his, another former soldier she couldn't remember the name of, but she knew he'd been in Iraq for a long time. She found herself chin to slightly slick and damp muscular chest of Steve and she looked up. Natasha smiled with a smug grin and said "Steve.. We were just going for a swim.. If you guys want, you can stick around.."

"You're not wearing a suit though." Steve noted as he looked down at Desiree who said "I, err.. She dragged me out here." pointing at Natasha, making him chuckle as he looked at her a moment. "How'd she get you to leave the lab anyway? Most of the time when I try you don't even hear me knock over Buddy Holly blaring in the background."

"I just dragged her ass out." Natasha said as she nudged Steve's friend who snickered and leaned in, whispered "Boy's got it bad."

"Not as bad as her though. She turns into a literal walking mess around him. Lightbulbs shatter, the works. It's cute. Dangerous and a little odd but still cute. Steve needs that."

"He really does."

"Actually, we were gonna go play a few rounds of basketball.. But maybe later you can show me how to work an MP3 player?" Steve asked as he looked at her. Desiree nodded dumbly and said quietly, "Yeah, err.. That'd be great. Wait.. That mean you finally took my advice and got one to take on your runs?" to which he nodded and said "See you later."

He walked down the opposite side of the hall and his friend smirked as he said "So that's the girl, huh man?"

"I said nothing. She's practically young enough to technically be my grandchild. It'd be weird.. Besides, Peggy.. And I barely know her." Steve said as his friend said "And I'm calling bullshit, man. If you barely knew her, you wouldn't know her file like the back of your hand.. And technically, Steve, you're getting a second shot at being in the prime of your life. Men would die to get that. Take the shot."

"She's not into me."

"I think she is."

"You and Natasha keep trying to shove me with people. I'm not really looking.." Steve tried to counter as his friend just laughed and shook his head said calmly, "And you keep sayin that, man.. But you're clueless."

Steve thought it over. He liked Desiree but... He just didn't know if anything beyond friendship was a good idea considering she was now one of the agents in the lab, and considering how protective Dr. Banner could be about the girl sometimes, almost like an overprotective father and not just a mentor.

But maybe it wasn't entirely worth ignoring as an idea. They did enjoy spending time with each other and she seemed to open up more around him when it was just the two of them talking.

Besides, everyone kept telling him Peggy would want him to have a normal life and a second chance.. Maybe they were right.. He still just felt like it was too damn soon and her being gone still cut him like a knife.

But maybe at some point, right?


	6. Chapter 6

_CHAPTER FIVE:_

_Sleepwalkers  
_

She couldn't sleep well at night. She'd never been able to sleep well at night, her mind just didn't shut down. Especially when she had a lot on it, like tonight, apparently. She'd been working on some kind of chemical compound earlier and she'd had a break through with it, then she'd had a minor setback with the breakthrough. And there was Natasha Romanov's insistance that she go swimming earlier, that which Desiree really felt like she could've done without.

Currently, she roamed the halls of the compound everyone was stuck in together, and thought about everything on her mind while she sipped on a bottled water she'd grabbed from the kitchen area after leaving her room.' _Romanov bothers you because you actually like Steve and she's a flirt. You see her flirting with him and you have to admit it, it makes you hella jealous. Not that it'd matter, he'd never notice you.' _was the one thought that seemed to pop up in her mind over and over again, repeating like a bad spot on an old record or a cd.

She grumbled as she uncapped the top from her bottled water and chugged a good three or four swallows of it, the cool liquid refreshing her. "Why's it so damn hot in here anyway?" she wondered aloud, wincing when she stubbed her bare big toe in the darkness. "Shit. Ouch." she mumbled seconds later as she dug around, found her cell phone and turned on the light on it, using it to sort of find her way around the compound without waking anyone. She figured that those who hadn't went out tonight were all in the bed and she didn't want to wake - or deal with- anyone.

She focused on the door at the end of the hallway, smirked in triumph when the door's lock clicked open and the door quietly opened just a sliver. She'd been working on her telekinesis, but that was another thing she didn't admit readily. She'd actually gotten fairly decent at it. She walked down the hallway that seconds before had been closed off and was about halfway down when she realized that it was the team's sleeping quarters. A faint blush crept into her cheeks as she passed by Steve's partially open door and she saw him sprawled across the bed, snoring lightly.

"Well, I'll be damned. Captain snores." she mused to herself with a giggle as she turned a corner and collided into a barely awake Tony Stark who looked at her and blinked then said "Are you alright?"

"Couldn't sleep, Stark. Just getting in, huh?" she asked in amusement as he laughed and shook his head no then said "Didn't go out actually. I skyped with Pepper tonight. She's still straightening things up in DC, remember?"

"Oh yeah. How's the Nova coming?"

"It's going. I'm waiting on parts." Tony said as he asked Desiree with a curious grin, "What were you doing in this side of the compound? The lab techs and scientists normally sleep on the northern wing.." as she scratched her head and said quietly, "Just started wandering."

"Mhmm.. Wandering, huh? And listening to..." he paused and strained to hear the faintest sound of Metallica's 'Of Wolf & Man' coming from her earbuds as he smirked and finished his sentence, "Metallica."

"Yeah, I know, I know.. It's a scientific fact that heavy metal doesn't help an insomniac, but.. It soothes me." Desiree blurted. Tony chuckled, waved his hands and said casually, "It wasn't an interrogation."

"Oh.. I'm.. My bad." Desiree said quietly as she peered over Tony's shoulder and into Steve's open room. Tony, of course, saw this and chuckled as he said with a wink, "Go in, kid."

"Are you fucking insane, sir? He might kill me if he wakes up and finds me in his room. Besides.. I'm not even supposed to be in this side of the compound, remember?" she pointed out, making Tony laugh and say casually, "We all do things we're not supposed to. Lighten up, kid. Doesn't hurt to bend the rules just a little." as he walked away down the hall, heading back to his own sleeping area. She stared after him a few moments, grumbling to herself. She turned and looked one more time. She clenched and unclenched her hands and paced a moment.

"I could go in and cover the poor guy up. I mean he is half on and half off the bed. Then it's straight back to my own sleeping quarters, yes sir." she muttered to herself nervously, then mentally kicking herself as she thought _'He's just a guy, Des. And he's probably only interested in being your friend. It's not like it's a big deal, anybody knows that you can use your telepathy to bypass the locking doors on this place. If he wakes, just pretend to be sleepwalking or something.'_

She approached his room tentatively and stood in the door way for a little bit, arms crossed, biting her lower lip. She stepped away from the door and quietly tiptoed towards the bed, keeping a far enough distance that she could bolt if she had to. Using her telekinesis, she slowly slid the thin blanket up and over his sleeping form. Satisfied that he was no longer sleeping awry in the bed and he was covered up, she walked just a hair closer.

Her eyes caught on the picture on the nightstand, him with the woman everyone told him was dead now. She bit her lower lip a few seconds and finally, she turned, every intention of walking out of the room. Instead, she was surprised when the dim lamp next to his bed came on and he sat up, rubbed his eyes sleepily and asked her in a sleepy voice, "Desiree?"

"I, err... Shit..." she muttered as she added "Just gonna go now."

"What were you doing in here? Did you need something?" he asked, his eyes open now, himself fully awake. She mentally kicked herself as she looked at him and said quietly, "Nah.. Just couldn't sleep so I was exploring. Guess I took one wrong turn too many because here I am." while nervously avoiding his gaze, which was steady, trained on her.

"You okay?" he asked again. She nodded and said firmly, "I'm fine, Steve. Go back to sleep. We'll talk tomorrow or something." as she started to edge out of his room. She'd gotten about halfway down the hallway when she felt a tap to her shoulder. She turned to find him standing there, towering over her, shirtless and in a pair of sweats. "C'mon.. When I can't sleep I go to the deck and look at the sky." he said casually as she looked at him and then said with a shrug, "You sure? I mean it's my fault you're awake now."

"It's not.. I actually wasn't sleeping all that well to begin with. I was.. I had.. I've got a lot on my mind lately. It kinda makes me.." he said as she joined in with a shrug "An insomniac. I know.. Boy do I know that feeling." as they walked towards the upper level of the compound, the deck area. He slid the door open and she let him walk out, walking out behind him, carefully keeping her distance as she studied the sky. She could hear her father explaining the constellations and the stars, the galaxies as she looked up and she was bought out of her thoughts by Steve asking "You alright? You look like you're thinking about something."

"Yeah, my dad.. He used to tell me stories about all the constellations, I mean before he became a nut job." she muttered as she bit her lower lip and looked up at him then asked, "That girl in the picture next to your bed.. That's Peggy, right?"

"Mhmm. Missing her is driving me crazy. There's so much we didn't get to do or say to each other. And while I was out, she had this whole other life.. A husband, kids, a family.. I just.. I guess I feel cheated or something." he admitted as he scanned the landscape that stretched out ahead of them, the sunrise as it started to fully set in. Desiree nodded quietly and then said "It'll happen one day. I mean you got this second chance at life, right? So take it. I doubt she'd want you sitting around mourning what you two never got to have in the first place." as she dug around in her pocket, produced a cigarette and a lighter.

"You really should quit."

"I've been doing it so long it's like an instinct." she said as she shrugged and looked at the landscape that lie in front of them, the town that was asleep hours before as it began to slowly wake up and move around. "I love early mornings." she admitted with a sheepish grin as he asked her "Why?"

"Because it means that you made it through all the shit the day before put in your way. You lived another day. You're getting another chance to keep going." she admitted as she kicked her bare feet against the cool stone terrace. She exhaled and looked at the Virginia Slim in between her fingers and said "Maybe I'll quit." casually as he nodded and then asked with a shrug, "Wanna go grab some cereal from the kitchen or something? Before Tony beats us both in there?"

"He'll probably sleep until lunch, but sure. Lucky Charms?" she asked hopefully. He chuckled and asked "Why Lucky Charms?" as he looked at her.

"Are you kidding me right now? I love marshmellows and milk for breakfast. I thought that's why anyone bought the cereal let alone ate it." Desiree said as he looked at her a few moments and chuckled, then slid the door to the deck area open, letting her walk through first.

"So.. Have you been up all night?"

"Give or take a few hours, yeah." Desiree said as she looked up at him and added "And don't you start on me either. Dr. Banner already read me the riot act. I just can't shut my mind off." as she bit her lower lip.

He stared at her a few moments when she wasn't looking, her advice about Peggy rattling around in his brain. If she had a clue how he felt about her, would she still tell him that?

Or would she distance herself and choose to ignore the way he felt? He knew she had limited experience with romantic relationships and he also knew that he was pretty much in the same boat. But the more he got to know her, the more he couldn't deny he did feel something for her. "So.. Are you going to the lab?"

"After a catnap, maybe." she said as she rubbed her forehead. She had a slight migraine because she'd used her telekinesis a lot more lately. He looked at her and then asked with a smile, "You've got a headache?"

"Mhmm.. I blame Fury's ass." she said which made them both laugh and then stop for a moment.

"So.."

"So.."

The conversation died as they sat at a table, cereal in front of them, her with the Times and a pen, concentrating on the crossword puzzle. Steve couldn't help but watch her and wonder if maybe he should at least try to make some kind of move. He knew other guys were interested in her, she never seemed to notice them. That was one of many things he found himself growing to like about her.

Before either of them could speak up again, Fury's voice came over the intercom, calling for Steve and she called out to him as he left the room, "Hey.. Uhh, good luck out there. Don't like, die.." awkwardly as she bit her lower lip and fell silent again, kicking herself.

He smiled a little and waving he said with a slightly cocky grin, "I don't plan to. And you.. No dangling Fury by his bootlaces?"

"Can't make any promises, Steve." she said as she watched him go, chewing thoughtfully on her cereal. She took a few deep breaths and stood, stretching as she went to throw her bowl away.

Why did she have to be so damn awkward around him? And more importantly, why could she not just ignore the way she felt about him?


	7. Chapter 7

_CHAPTER SIX:_

_Won't Back Down  
_

"There is no way in hell I'm going to do that. I know what'll happen and I'm not going to let it happen and weigh on my conscience. Have you even stopped one time, Fury, to consider what will happen if this gets out and the results don't go as planned? SHIELD's already got enough on it's plate currently, I'd think." Desiree stated as she stared him down with her arms crossed over her chest, firm and unyielding. She didn't intend to just let Fury railroad her into selling this newest development to a goverment agency, not when she hadn't had time to develop and test it with the help of Dr. Banner, her mentor. Sure, she might have seen the positive results, but she wanted to see the whole picture.

Not just what good it could do. Because she knew firsthand that with good? Came bad. And sometimes, with bad, came the truly awful and terrifying. They didn't need to rush this experiment, they had no cause to hurry into things from where she stood, so she was going to stand her ground, boss or not. And as usual, Fury wasn't happy with her. In fact, he looked downright angry.

"In case you haven't noticed, Dr. Altier, our men need the safety this could bring them. We're sadly outnumbered by Hydra right now and we're losing more agents every day. This revamp of that serum."

"Could be the worst thing you ever do for those agents, Fury, damn it. You need to let me test it more, work on it more. Even Dr. Banner thinks this is a bad idea, sir. I personally think you're a fucking idiot but hey.. Just my opinion and I'm just a lowly college girl who got roped into this shit because you had enough crap on my dad to throw me in some lab and shoot me full of needles and run endless tests on me. But there is no way in hell sir, with all due respect, I'm going to stand by and let you start doing this." Desiree said as Fury studied her for a moment, intently.

"You have another month. What about this bothers you the most, Ms. Altier?" he asked, smug amused grin on his face as she looked at him and said "That's my business. Not yours." through gritted teeth. Fury smirked and said casually, "It seems like you're worried about the physical effects because of your interest in a certain Captain maybe?"

"This is not that. They are two entirely different matters." Desiree insisted as he nodded obligingly and then said "We need this. The agents have nothing against Hydra's over developed weapons now. And if we don't fight back soon, whether you like to admit it or not, we'll have a war going on, right here on American soil."

"I realize this yes. But do you realize what might happen if this serum does worse than.. I mean you guys got lucky with Steve. Hydra got lucky with the soldiers they experimented on. To completely restructure the serum like this.. It makes it unstable."

"So do something about it. Work on it and stabilize it. You have another month to do it."

"It took the original creator at least a decade, Fury, you ignorant shit!" Desiree argued, throwing her shoe at the door just as Fury walked out and Dr. Banner walked in. "I see you two are getting along better." Dr. Banner joked as Desiree scowled and said "not funny."

"If you just pick your battles."

"Oh. I'm gonna pick 'em alright. My foot up his.." Desiree said as Dr. Banner shook his head, gave a dry chuckle of amusement and asked "Where are we on the serum? In your notes? I think I might know a way to stabilize things and up the strength."

"Without the people who take it going totally FUBAR, sir?" Desiree asked as Dr. Banner nodded solemnly and said "It's a risk, but we have to try. We're getting smaller and smaller every day. Especially since Hydra started making their own super soldiers again."

The news played on a small screen in the background and Desiree sighed and shook her head as she saw another news report about Hydra and their rogue agent, the Winter Soldier. "This guy.. I don't get how he's escaped and is hiding. I mean seriously.. They're a goverment agent for fucks sake.. They can't find their own damn weapon before he destroys everything?"

"He didn't always used to be that way." Steve mused from the doorway as he held out Desiree's converse and asked "Throwing shoes at Fury already? It's not even noon."

"The man is the most intolerable, stubborn..." Desiree started as she noticed the way Steve was watching the television intently. Then she asked him "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I just.. It's hard to believe that's my old best friend." Steve muttered as he asked her, "Fury give you an extension? For the serum and the changes you guys are making, I mean.." the scientific jargon sounding foreign on his tongue. But he was trying, science was apparently the way to this girls heart, he was realizing this. He was trying to show interest in things she liked.

Apparently science and music that sounded more like men screaming than music, star gazing at night and reading thick books that looked like they were hard to even begin to understand, games of chess, horror and sci fi movies, cartoons on a weekend morning, crossword puzzles and sleeping late were things she liked more than anything.

Except Lucky Charms, of course. She lived and died by her bowl of Lucky Charms at almost 7 am every morning. And now he found himself getting up to eat them with her. They weren't that bad but he preferred cornflakes, honestly.

She smiled at him a little and then nodded as she said quietly, "I keep telling that asshat that we need more than a month. Even Dr. Banner's told him this. He's just so one track minded and tired of losing our other agents, he's hell bent on doing it now and damning the consequence.. I'm just worried.."

Steve nodded and said quietly, "About the long term effects the test subjects will have."

"Exactly.. I mean I know they're volunteering and they wanna be Hercules or something, or like you even, but they don't realize that what we're doing is a huge health risk. I mean Dr. Banner doesn't even know how the original will affect you in the long term, Steve. Doesn't that scare you?" she asked as she held his gaze, her hand knotted in her hair as she did so.

"It does.. But I try not to think about it. As long as I keep showing signs of good health, I won't." Steve said quietly as she looked at him and said "I just.. I know how it feels.. Even though I didn't ask for my brush with it all."

He nodded. That he understood totally. And it sickened him really, what her own father did to her all in the name of science. He knew she really cared, she wanted to help people with her experiments, not hurt them. It showed her true character, even if she hid it behind surly remarks, sarcasm, statistics and anger.

She wasn't a bad person. And the longer he knew her, the more attractive that became to him.

And it was getting harder not to make a move or clue her in to how he felt. And he was half tempted to stop hiding it. But he didn't want to scare her away, she was so skittish after all, so for now he mostly kept quiet.

But soon, maybe. He'd have to do something or Natasha and Justin would rat him out.. If Tony and Clint didn't beat them both to it. They loved to tease him about his 'thing' for the little lab tech, after all.


End file.
